Views on?

What are your views on ephobophila or the love for adolecence? And is it merely another word for pedestary, which was common back then.

I think you summed up the ideal with 'prey upon the innocence of youth' which is what is now. For Spartan culture it would not be the same because of the way children were raised in their system. It was inheirently violent, with the violence placed firmly in the child's hands in fact.

Today it's a very different culture that we live in. For one we don't arm half our kids with clubs, give them all the food and make the other half fight for their share (but it would be interesting).

Bottom line is that if I caught an older man or woman having sex with my sister I'd tear them a new one... and maybe more than one at that. So if I find it unacceptable in that light I can only see it that way in every light.

"For one we don't arm half our kids with clubs"

No, but America arms them with Guns...Sorry had to say that. It is quite fascinating how similar american and british culture emulate spartan ideals. Thank you for saying this Mr Bret, it really brings a whole controversy in itself.

Children nowadays are raised in a system where sex has become a nessecity and a way to get in with the "cool" kids. Honestly I found it truly shocking when a 10-16 year old children come out to say that they have had sex.

It's quite funny how you say that my ideaology cause hatred. I think it's too late for that. Don't you think?

I do not blame nor do I hate america, but seeing as America is the world's leading superpower. I found that not only are children in this day and age having sex before the age of 18 merely because sex is frequently bombarding them. Rather than accuse and insult posts that is different than yours. I suggest you take a better look at who started this world sex craze. Excuse my language.

As for arming children with Guns, I think the Afganistan war, and Iraq war speak for themselves.

This in my opinion is what I think. FYI, I live in Nashville and if you don't care where I live, please do not ask.

P.S: I respect your freedom to state your opinion, I suggest you do the very same.

Thank you

I admire Bob’s convictions on this subject, but I believe convictions should be based on evidence. We will get nowhere with generalizations and stereotyping. I can understand the ideology of protecting innocence as long as we can. I agree with Bob that that would be an ideal society. I think we should examine the reason why society does not view all people under the age of 21 as children. If we do believe that, it is sort of ironical that most support governments that train children to fight wars. Historically societies have not always waited until the age of eighteen to encourage youth to give up their innocence

I believe that if you believe everything that you read, you would believe that the honored literary figure, Edger Allen Poe, was allowed in this country to secretly marry his 13 year old cousin

I do not condone the stealing of innocence in anyway, but I prefer to leave the judging of the living and the dead to a power greater than myself

^No, but America arms them with Guns...Sorry had to say that.

Yeah... I don't quite see the comparison with teen illegally buying and aquiring guns on the black market compared to giving a seven year old a club and telling him the amount of food he eats tonight depends solely on how much he can stop the other boys stealing stealing from his table.

Iraq and Afghanistan are wars/occupations/both fought by a 100% volunteer army (with restrictions: age of 17 years plus). It bears no relevance at all to the Spartans in my reference as the situations are completely different.

I do love a civilized discussion. This one could be very thought provoking in terms of cultureal advancement

I suppose that we as poets really do not have that much influence on the politics of morality
It is a sad state of semantics when a word that means love has become so widley associated with abuse

“Ephebophilia has been defined as a sexual preference in which an adult is primarily or exclusively sexually attracted to postpubescent adolescents. It comes from the Greek: έφηβος (ephebos) variously defined as "one arrived at puberty", "a youth of 18 who underwent his dokimasia and was registered as a citizen (Athens)", and "arriving at man's estate"; and φιλία (-philia) "love".[1] Despite this classical etymology it is a term of recent coinage, created by psychologist John Money in the late twentieth century”

Do people define words or do words define people?

All I know is that it's very very annoying when I drive along the road and see a lass in a tiny tiny miniskirt with gorgeous legs and an arse like two otters wrestling in a sack, and as I draw level it becomes apparent that she's the wrong side of 16. Wrong, from my father-of-a-16-year-old perspective that is.

Trainspotting. Renton. Diane. Say no more. ;-)

That is a very honest good point Ed. I must admit from a distance it is very difficult to determine age. There is a huge difference from stimulation, and knowingly seeking a relationship with an innocent victim. At best there is a lot of gray area between even what is an acceptable age difference in potential relationships. Cultures have been successful in studying the mental development of the period of childhood to adulthood, but there have been margins in determining what age a person should have the freedom to choose when to consent. I have heard extreme opinions that believe that post puberty last well beyond the age of 21.

In this backwater town the pub argument is thus: "Is it half your age plus 5, or is it a quarter your age plus 10?"

"I remember reading that somewhere about Poe, but wasn't that staged so he could come to this country?"

I never read anything about the marriage being staged. To be honest with you it is beyond my imagination how that could have been possible. From all accounts I have read Poe was already in this country because he had just been fired from an editing job

“Poe became assistant editor of the periodical in July 1835. Within a few weeks, he was discharged after being found drunk repeatedly. Returning to Baltimore, he secretly married Virginia, his cousin, on September 22, 1835. She was 13 at the time”
-From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia-

I have been researching the allegations of the current Pope’s involvement in the sex scandal cover up

“In 2001, while he was a cardinal, he issued a secret Vatican edict to Catholic bishops”
So far I have only been able to find bias hostile interpretations of this document

People basically believe what they want to believe but it is beyond my imagination how a cover up could have worked that long

Was the hush money paid to the child, or the parents? If the parents were extorting money from the Pope couldn’t the parents be charged with obstruction of justice?

edit

How many children were molested by catholic priest's,?
I am not going to make it seem that any number would be acceptable
“Some media sources have noted that when placed in perspective, the documented cases in the Catholic Church are much lower than incidents of pedophilia in the public school system. For the latter, the problem is over three times higher (up to 5% of American teachers, versus estimates of 0.2% and 1.5% of Catholic priests), and only an estimated 1% of pedophile teachers have faced the loss of their license since most are merely moved to other districts. The police are rarely notified.

The solution to the secular problem would not be to destroy the public school system, but to reform it
I believe the churches are in need of reform also